6. Anton
ANTON
I glance into the rearview mirror, to find her gaze fixed steadily out of the window, doing all she can to pretend that this isn’t happening. I grimace—I can’t exactly blame her, but she’s going to need to talk eventually.
She recognized me at once, I know she did, I could see the shock in her face when her gaze registered that it was me. I had half-expected her to lay it all out on the line then and there, tell me what the fuck she thought of me and insist on her freedom…
But she seems too stunned by all this.
I took her to the car and guided her to the back seat, and she didn’t say a word as I pulled away from my brother’s bar.
She seems too much in shock to manage anything more than the bare minimum, and I can’t say I blame her. I can’t even imagine what’s going through her mind right now, how terrified she must be, what she must think of me.
But my mind keeps running back to my brother.
Artem, the way he spoke about her, it was as though they’d had some kind of relationship in the past. But if that were the case, why would he be selling her off? Some kind of punishment for some perceived slight against him?
As far as I know, he hasn’t clocked on to the fact that I’m the one who purchased her, and that’s how I want it to stay.
He clearly has an established clientele, and he must have spent months, if not years, cultivating this kind of reputation. Right under my goddamn nose.
We drive in silence, and I look back at her every now and then, wondering if she wants to hear my assurances that everything is going to be okay.
I doubt it.
She likely thinks I have purchased her for nefarious reasons, though I would never in my fucking life lay a hand on a woman who didn’t want me. Fuck, the thought of it is enough to tense my hands on the wheel.
Finally, my mansion comes into view, or, at least, the walled garden that leads to the driveway and the house beyond. As my car approaches, I hear the wrought-iron gate click open, as one of the guards I have on watch spots me on my way and lets me in.
The wheels crunch over the gravel as I head up to the house, and I sense her peering out behind me, no doubt trying to get a feel for the place that she is going to be calling home for a while.
As we climb out of the car, the guards have opened the large front doors by the time we approach, undoing the large bolt and tapping the security code in so that it will not announce my arrival. I can sense them staring at me, probably wondering what the hell I’m up to.
I pay them no mind. What matters now is getting her comfortable and trying to assure her she has nothing to fear from me, as hard as I know that will be for her to trust in.
“This way,” I tell her, as I lead her down to the guest rooms that Marlena, the housekeeper, always keeps fresh for guests. Not that I exactly have many of those coming and going these days, as I like to keep myself to myself as much as possible.
This line of work doesn’t exactly lend itself to friends, and most of the time, I’m better off solo, without putting people in harm’s way.
She follows me, the sound of her footsteps echoing off the walls around us. She keeps her head down and gaze locked to the floor like it’s the most fascinating thing in the world.
“This will be your room,” I tell her, as I push open a door, gesturing for her to step inside. “Anything you need—”
“Anything I need?” she exclaims, her voice dripping with incredulity. “Are you serious? You just fucking bought me from Artem, and now—”
“I know how it looks.”
“Oh, you do?” she replies, tossing her hands in the air. “Well, that’s a relief, because I was starting to think that you had no clue how much I fucking hate you right now.”
There’s not an inch of doubt in her voice, and it’s clear she means every word coming out of her mouth.
I run a hand through my hair. I don’t blame her.
Whatever has landed her in this position, it’s clearly not what she wanted, clearly not her choice, and she must see me as a part of it, no matter how intently I try to convince her that I would never in a million years do something like that.
“Maya, please,” I reply, keeping my voice as steady as I can. “Shower. Rest. We can talk about this tomorrow.”
“No, we’re going to talk about it right the fuck now,” she retorts, shaking her head. “Was that what you meant to do that night we met? Steal me away so Artem could sell me to the highest bidder? What, you got distracted, thought you would try out the goods yourself first—”
“I would never do something like that,” I snarl back. I know that she has every right to be seriously fucking pissed with me right now, but I’m not going to stand aside and let her tell me what kind of man I am, not when I’m trying to drag her out of this mess that she currently finds herself in.
“Oh, come on,” she retorts. “I know Artem. I know what he’s capable of. How do you know him? You work for him, or—”
“He’s my brother.”
She jolts at that revelation, clearly taken aback at how blunt I’m being.
“Your... Your brother?” she murmurs. She sounds shocked, and I can’t say I blame her. This must be the last thing she was expecting. Even harder for her to believe now, I’m sure, that I managed to stumble across her by complete accident.
“What the fuck do you mean? You’re related to him? You work with him?”
“I don’t have anything to do with the shit he pulls off,” I reply sharply. “I only found out that he was selling women—”
I stop myself in my tracks, rubbing my hand over my face, and then force myself to continue. “I only found out about the auctions tonight. I would have done something much sooner if I’d known. And I didn’t know that you were going to be the one for sale this evening.”
Her face pales, and she sinks down on to the bed behind her, hands trembling as she twists them in her lap. “Oh, God,” she murmurs, shaking her had. “I—I still can’t believe...” She trails off, the enormity of it clearly more than she can take.
I want to do something to assure her that she has nothing to fear, but I doubt it works that way, not for her, not now, not after all she has seen. Whatever I try to tell her, she’s going to look on me as culpable in this, having thrown down that money to buy her away from my brother.
I sink down before her, gazing up into her eyes. “I didn’t know he was doing this, Maya,” I reiterate. “I didn’t know when I came to help you that night, and if I’d thought that would put you in his firing line, I would never have done it.”
She smiles, slightly sadly.”Oh, I don’t think you’re the one who did that,” she replies quietly, shaking her head. “I’m the one who...” She trails off again.
I wish I could reach into her head, figure out what is going on inside there, make sense of everything she is so clearly hiding from me.
What did she do, exactly, to draw the attention of my brother like that?
Was him selling her off the way he did a matter of revenge?
What could she have done to earn that kind of retribution... ?
I think of pressing for more, but it’s clear she’s exhausted. She’s been through too much stress.
I will destroy Artem for this, for bringing down my family name with an association with such cruelty. He might think he’s gotten away with it, but I refuse to let him sully our father’s name with involvement in something this dark, something this fucking brutal.
“Rest,” I order her, as I take a step back. “I’ll have Marlena bring you something to eat.”
She stares up at me, her body tense, her shoulders drawn up to her ears as she gazes back at me. “You... What are you going to do to me?” she asks, her voice laced with a panicked discomfort.
“I’m not going to do a damn thing to you, Maya. Just stay here and you’ll be fine.”
“And if I want to leave?” she asks, lifting her chin slightly, challenging me as best she can.
“You don’t want to do that.”
“So you are going to do something to me,” she snaps back. “If I try to leave—”
“I’m trying to keep you safe.”
That sad smile curls up the corners of her lips again. “Right,” she mutters. “Yeah. Of course you are.”
And, with that, she lays down on the bed, tucking her knees up into her chest and turning to face the wall. It’s clear that she wants me out of here, and I can’t blame her.
I study her for another moment, this woman I never thought I would lay eyes on again—even in her exhaustion and terror, she looks as beautiful to me as she did that night.
I can only imagine what the other men in that room would have done if they had gotten their hands on her, and right now, all that matters is showing her she does not have to fear the same thing from me.
As hard as it might be for her to believe that.
I head for the door and pull it shut behind me, gesturing along the corridor to Ken, one of the household guards who keeps watch over this place for me.
“Keep an eye on her door,” I order him, pointing back towards her room. “Make sure she doesn’t go anywhere, got it?”
He nods, knowing better than to question me right now.
I stalk back along the corridor, heading for my office, where I know I need to take some time to clear my head.
As hard as it might be to admit, I have to start figuring out what I’m going to do to take down my brother—my flesh and blood, the last living member of my family.
I have to turn against him.